Medicare could save billions by scrapping random drug plan assignment

A new study finds that Medicare is spending billions of dollars more than it needs to on prescription drugs for low-income seniors and disabled beneficiaries. In 2013, an estimated 10 million people who participate in the Medicare prescription drug program, known as Part D, received government subsidies to help pay for that coverage. They account for an estimated three-quarters of the program's cost. Most of those low-income enrollees are randomly placed in a plan that costs less than the average for the region where the person lives. But even though these are lower-cost plans, they often end up costing the government and the beneficiary more.